An Autumn Rain and A Cup of Juice

There are two kinds of perfect days here in Michigan.  One of them is a cool, crisp, sunny autumn day.  The other is a cool, crisp, rainy autumn day.  This past weekend we got to have one of each.  Saturday the sun was shining though it was the kind of chilly that late September brings.  Sunday was rainy and cool.  Sunday was also the day the boys had their very first cup of juice.  Yes.  Their very first.  And yes, they are four years old.  While the boys have known little to nothing about juice for the entirety of their childhood up to this point in time, it was a pretty special moment for me.

I've never understood kids and juice.  There is quite literally nothing that makes me cringe more than seeing a young baby with an 8 ounce bottle full of juice.  I've wracked my brain over and over again and then some, trying to find a single redeemable quality to juice.  I've never come up with anything.  Instead I know young children who refuse to drink anything but juice, and their parents- rightfully at their wits end- justify giving in because it is the only way to keep their kids hydrated.  I know far too many kids, and see far too many more, who are overweight and even obese before they enter preschool.  And I know three year olds who needed crowns on multiple teeth because their nightly bottles of juice have decayed their tiny little baby teeth. 

Kids and juice just seem to go together.  Your toddler's first juice box is like a rite of passage.  But why?  Where along the way did giving your baby juice become the thing to do?  Why does nearly every parent today believe that their baby needs juice?  And on a lesser note, why do we as parents blindly do what everyone else is doing without thinking things through for ourselves?  Just because someone once told you that juice keeps them regular or juice has nutrients- why do we take that at face value?  Aside from someone who has a child with very specific medical requirements which I'm the first to admit I know nothing about, I can counter just about any "pro-juice" statement with a much healthier way of achieving the same goal.  What bothers me the most is that our pediatricians do nothing to educate us.  Sure, they'll say water it down.  But why can't one of them just step out there and say it- 99% of our kids don't need any juice at all!!

We never gave our boys juice as babies.  They got breastmilk, then non-homogenized whole milk from the local dairy farm and water.  They LOVE water.  Granted, we did our best to train them to love water.  We made water a big deal.  And when water was their only option throughout the day, day after day after day, they just accepted water as their favorite drink.  They truly love the stuff.  So why give them anything else?  Why introduce tablespoons and tablespoons of liquid sugar when they don't know such a thing even exists?  And because they never knew it existed, they never asked for it. If our boys are thirsty, they drink water or milk- something vitally important to their growth, development, and health.  And if we want them to get the vitamins and nutrients in an apple or a grape- we give them an apple or a grape!   It hasn't always been easy.  By the time they were two years old, everyone and their brother wanted to give our boys a juice box.  One year olds birthday party? Juice box.  Finish a craft at Home Depot?  Juice Box.  Daddy donates blood?  Juice box.  We always politely decline, and only a handful of times have either of the  boys even inquired as to what it was.

But on Sunday I finally gave in.  I'll be honest, I hemmed and hawed a bit.  It wasn't the first time they had asked for a cup of juice.  They had asked once before, about a month ago- the last time I made chili.  Because if you recall, Sunday was a beautiful cool, crisp, rainy autumn day...  so I did the only thing you can do on such a day.  I made a big pot of venison chili.  And this time when the boys asked for a cup of juice, I turned to my dear husband for a bit of encouragement and he agreed- it was time.  So I poured each of the boys their very first cup of juice.  Tomato juice.  They thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread and I promised that they could have a cup of their beloved tomato juice every time I make a big pot of chili.  Because I can think of a lot of reasons why it's okay to enjoy a small cup of tomato juice every now and then :)